Icon of authentic music
SHARADA RAMANATHAN
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The best of Brindamma was heard in this memorial event.
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There are moments when one feels grateful for the vibrancy of India's oral tradition. It was one such moment for disciples of Brinda, Kiranavali, Vidyasankar and Indira Menon, when they observed `Brindamma Day' by organising a function recently.
The evening began with a brief recital by A. R. Sundaram, Brindamma's first and oldest student. She was accompanied by Savita Narasimhan, student of N. Ravikiran. A. R. Sundaram brought back to life the aura of yore, with her traditional rendition of three compositions that were special to Brindamma, "Ekkalattilum" in raga Purvikalyani, "Vinave O Manasa" in raga Vivardhini and a padam, "Pusadaaramu" in Todi.
Nagalakshmi Lakshmanan, who accompanied Brindamma in concerts during her last performing decade, performed with the robustness that Brindamma was also known for.
Geetha Raja learnt from Brindamma when the guru used to visit Mumbai every summer. Geetha rendered "Enneramum" in raga Devagandhari by Gopalakrishna Bharati, a composition that Brindamma often sang.
The evening broke into video excerpts from a recording of Brindamma accompanied by Vegavahini and T. Ranganathan at University of Washington, Seattle, taken in June 1969 by Prof. Robert Garfias. Brindamma's "Merusamana" in Mayamalavagowla was so mesmerising that even a video could stand distinguished from live performances.
Ravikiran made a substantive presentation on Brinda's music and style with the aid of audio clips from her concerts. He chose the padam "Moratopu" in raga Sahana to highlight the range and finesse of the voice, and the viruttam (Behag and Kapi) and a sloka (raga Sahana) to demonstrate the influence of Hindustani music. Anuradha Sriram performed Tyagaraja's "Vidulaku" in raga Mayamalavagowla, Subbarama Dikshitar's "Kantimati" in raga Kalyani and the famous "Varugalamo Ayya" in raga Manji by Gopalakrishna Bharati.
S. Girish, Brindamma's own grandson, performed with genetic ease.
The finale was a rare performance by the trio Shashikiran, Kiranavali and Chitravina Ganesh.
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